Daily Times

PARIS: Paris St Germain coach Mauricio Pochettino is hoping his team’s home form will match their away performances as they carry a 3-2 advantage against Bayern Munich into their Champions League quarter-final second leg at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday. The French champions advanced from the last 16 with a 4-1 away win in the first leg against Barcelona before suffering in the return leg at home in a 1-1 draw. In Ligue 1, their best performance of the season came last month in a 4-2 win at Olympique Lyonnais, which was followed nine days ago by a 1-0 home loss to Lille. “I agree that we’ve been better away from home,” Pochettino told a news conference on Monday. “It is something we will have to look into at the end of the season but let’s hope things start turning around tomorrow.”

PSG suffered in Munich last Wednesday with the German champions boasting 31 attempts on goal, but Pochettino’s team were ruthless up front with Kylian Mbappe scoring a double. They will, however, be without captain Marquinhos after the centre back picked up an adductor muscle injury in the first leg. Pochettino said he would not start the game and later on Monday Marquinhos was not included in the squad. Italy midfielder Marco Verratti is eligible following a weeklong isolation after being infected by COVID-19 while on international duty, but he is also unlikely to start. “In principle, it will be difficult for Marco to start while Alessandro Florenzi’s situation will be assessed tomorrow,” added the Argentine coach.

Italy full back Florenzi also tested positive for COVID-19 upon his return from international duty. Pochettino, who labelled Bayern as the “best team in Europe, best team in the world,” said PSG’s attitude would be key. “It was already hard to keep the ball against Barcelona already, it doesn’t matter who is playing. It’s a question of collective attitude,” he explained. “It’s a challenge for tomorrow, being able to keep the ball and hurt the opposition. “The Barca game is behind us and the Bayern game is another story. There will be moments when we will struggle and it’s in these moments that we will need to show solidarity and solidity.”